OK, here’s what I think. At least a few readers/followers have been thinking to themselves, “so Bill and Suzy have been having an interesting time in the Gulf of Naples. They’ve visited some fascinating islands (Capri and Ischia), eaten a bunch of great food, drank even more great wine, swam, shopped, and enjoyed themselves. But I thought they were going to Ischia to sail. What gives?”

Well we have been sailing, for several days now. And I can describe it in a single word. Unbelievable.

To say I am or we are hooked on sailing would be a gross understatement. Every evening our group of five amateur skippers sits around the dinner table, generally over enormous servings of seafood, and replays in minute detail (excruciating detail for the two non-sailors) the events of the day. This maneuver, that sail setting, the weather, the day’s most horrifying accident (and there have been some accidents and some close calls). We paid for one set of sailing lessons but we actually get two. What happens on the water and our reenactment of it later that day.

I won’t bore you with the minute details (that will be saved for face to face encounters) but let me regale you with some of the basics.

Our capitano – Andrea Proto – is the real deal. He is the Skipper and the Professor from Gilligan’s Island all rolled into one. Smart, ultra experienced, patient, knowledgable, kind and sharing all in one package. Under his floppy hat and burnt skin is a captain, a leader responsible for his boat and his crew, ever vigilant about the risks as well as the opportunities that nature affords us but also quick with a grin and a laugh. He has guided us through the most very basics – what is a sheet and what is a halyard – with patience that allowed us each to learn at our own speed, but to learn. On Day One we fumbled around our 38 foot sloop, wrapping lines on winches the wrong direction so they could not tighten, bearing away from the wind when he commanded us to luff into it and nearly abandoning the helm for fear that we might sink our ship. Four days later we rig the Istria with ease, even if we still occasionally wrap the winches anticlockwise.

The waters around Ischia are a treasure. We head out from the port of Casamicciola each afternoon, taking care not to get run over by the ferry traffic and other pleasure boaters, and emerge into the Bay of Naples. Nearby and to our right (starboard) is Ischia’s sister island of Procida with its satellite island of Vivara connected to it by a causeway. Straight ahead is mainland Italy, with Capo Miseno shielding Naples from view, Pozzuoli and the ancient Greek settlement of Cumae (Cuma) to the left. In the distance Vesuvius stands watch and to farther right the island of Capri towers in the haze and if you squint you can see Ventotene, the closest of the Pontine islands, a few hours away by sail and a few hours again to Ponza, our refuge for many of the past Italian summers. It has gotten us thinking of a return engagement cruising the gulf and the islands.

And while there is an incredible bounty of riches in the Gulf of Naples, when we set sail the destination has been the sailing itself. It hasn’t mattered where we were going to, just as long as we were going.

Dear reader, you will probably come to regret thinking to yourself, “I thought Bill and Suzy went to Ischia to sail. Why won’t they tell me about it?” There will be detail after minute detail in coming days. So strap on your life preserver and get ready to pull up you anchor. We hope you’ll join us on our journey.

Ci vediamo!
Bill and Suzy